


Darcy's Super Secret Playlist for Seducing Archers

by artificial_ink



Category: Hawkeye (Comics), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: And Clint is not as smooth as he sometimes thinks, Clint may or may not have a car fetish, Darcy and Jane Friendship FTW!, Darcy's Playlists are Amazeballs, F/M, My headcannon also says Charlie Bradbury and Darcy are BFFs, Thor is too helpful, Tony is annoying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-18
Updated: 2013-11-18
Packaged: 2018-01-02 00:22:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1050340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artificial_ink/pseuds/artificial_ink
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Clint thought he and Darcy had a pretty easygoing friendship. He has to rethink their relationship after digging around her playlists…</p>
            </blockquote>





	Darcy's Super Secret Playlist for Seducing Archers

**Author's Note:**

> **Rating/ Warnings** : Rated Mature for sexually explicit and suggestive song lyrics. And Clint's imagination.  
>  **Spoilers** : Very tiny spoilers for Thor 2 if you don't know who Ian Boothby is. Also a tiny spoiler of the Hawkeye comics written by Matt Fraction.  
>  **Disclaimer** : All song mentioned and quoted along with characters belong to Marvel.  
>  **A/N** : This was supposed to be a short and sweet one shot. It is not as short as I anticipated. But I'm uber excited to have finished something when I'm having that inability with stories and general things in my life.  
>  **Special thanks** : A special thanks to Katdemon1895. Who gave me ideas for when I was stuck. I always tend to take your advice, even when I think I won't. Because you're awesome.  
>  **Playlist suggestions** : I actually made [Darcy's Super Secret Playlist](http://8tracks.com/artificialink/darcy-s-super-secret-playlist-for-seducing-archers) which can be listened to on 8Tracks. Waring though, it's NFSW. Also, on 8Tracks, Captain America Ain't Here by Verbir52 is a great Hawkeye playlist (that's work and family safe!) and I imagined to be the one that Darcy would have made for Clint. All other songs mentioned directly in this fic can be found at the End Notes.

It wasn’t until after Puente Antiguo was past, the fight in New York was over and Thor was back on Earth for a while, when Clint actually met Darcy Lewis. Properly met her that is. They’d had a simple passing acquaintance in New Mexico. What with her being a potentially disposable intern and him being a high-ranking jackbooted thug- there wasn’t much reason for them to chat. When Jane relocated with Thor to New York, Darcy had followed. Also, when Jane was dragged by Thor to Avengers off duty get togethers, so was Darcy. Clint interacted with her a lot more nowadays. He soon decided during the third bimonthly frozen margarita night that it was a shame it had taken so long for them to get to know each other.

Darcy was snarky and in your face. She wasn’t afraid to sass Stark, told drinking stories that rivalled Thor’s and made Steve laugh with jokes that had terrible puns as punch lines. All qualities that he enjoyed in a human being. Natasha also seemed to have a soft spot for her. That was always a good sign.

Plus, Darcy had a rockin’ bod that she was hiding less and less. It was probably because it was getting warmer in New York. Whatever the reason, Clint was enjoying the view as he found excuses to hang out in the labs instead of doing deskwork inbetween missions. And to be honest, his excuses were getting lamer. Darcy told him as much one day after he snuck into the labs.

“That’s a shitty excuse. Just admit it, you love my face,” Darcy smirked. Her eyes were locked onto the laptop she was typing data into. As usual on low level excitement days, there was one earbud stuck in her ear.

“It’s the glasses. The sexy teacher look. I like a woman who can teach me a lesson,” Clint said, lowering his voice a half octave and leaning over her laptop screen. She still didn’t take her eyes of the screen but Clint thought he could detect a hint of pink on her cheeks.

“Normally people go straight to librarian. So I applaud your imagination’s slight deviation.”

“Want to see how else my imagination deviates?” Clint continued, letting innuendo soak each word. This was their game. He’d try and distract her from work and she ignored him. Before, Darcy cracked rather fast but it was getting harder to make her snort into her coffee. It just meant Clint was more obnoxious.

“Surprise me.”

“Well, you and me, empty lab-”

“I’m right here,” Jane interjected, fiddling with the internals of what looked to be an ‘infallible’ Stark issued device. Clint frowned and Darcy laughed.

“You get an F,” Darcy said, looking up at Clint and sticking out her tongue.

“You didn’t even let me finish. I meant, we find an empty lab and-”

“Sex her up on a desk, sex her up on a lab counter, by the test tubes- which is very unsafe by the way. We’ve heard all your boring sex ideas at this point. Get me a coffee or stop distracting my assistant,” ordered Jane.

“I am not boring when it comes to sex,” argued Clint.

“That’s what she said!” Jane snorted.

“Badum cha,” Darcy drummed and Clint was a little ashamed that it took him a second to understand his own pun. 

“Coffee wasn’t a joke by the way. Pour up or piss off,” Jane said in between switching tools. She swapped a small screwdriver for a hammer and slammed it against the innocent piece of tech.

Hell, it was Stark tech. It was probably asking for it.

“Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed, Dr. Sassypants,” Clint observed, turning to perch himself on the edge of Darcy’s desk.

“I woke up on the normal side, thank you,” Jane insisted, waving her hammer rather haphazardly.

“Jane’s been getting sassier ever since we started to sync up,” Darcy explained.

“Please tell me you mean watches.”

“No, our periods.”

“Actually,” Jane put down the hammer and turned to Darcy. “I think it started that time I inhaled a bit of your soul.”

Clint watched as Darcy ran towards Jane and engulfed the women in a hug before breaking down in giggles for about a solid minute. They fell to the ground in a pile of limbs and for once in his life, Clint did not find this woman pile to be all that sexy. In fact, he felt as if he was intruding on a really important Darcy and Jane bonding moment. They, however, did not notice him trying to avert his eyes.

“I’m a little uncomfortable,” Clint admitted when they picked themselves up and things started to appear more normal than not.

“You should be,” said Darcy, poking Clint in his side before she sat back down at her desk. He took a moment to appreciate her outfit. Dark tight jeans, black pumps and a white polka dot blouse with the bottom tied in a knot. It let little hints of skin peak out with each movement. Clint always enjoyed the lax dress codes in this lab.

“By the power of Grayskull!” Darcy’s phone suddenly rang. For some reason, Clint was the only one in the room that thought this was a bit odd.

“Was that from _He-Man and the Master of the Universe_?” Clint asked. The smirk from Darcy as she checked her text messages was all that was needed to know he was right.

“What my man want from you?” Jane asked as kind heartedly as one could with her choice of words.

“He’s asking me advice for Midgardian appropriate birthday presents.”

“As long as he gets it from you this time and not Tony.”

“I might just tell him to pop a bow on little Mew Mew and let his sweet, sweet bod be your gift. Or he could go splitsies with me for novelty science shot glasses.”

“Tell him to do both.”

“Can we get back to the fact that Thor’s ring tone on your phone is He-Man? I thought I was the only one who made that connection,” Clint practically bounced on the desk, trying to gear the conversation towards something he could join in on and not cringe.

“Actually, it was Jane’s idea.”

“Really?” Clint asked, raising an eyebrow and crossing his arms with a smirk.

“It was after New York and Jane was a little sore when Thor didn’t stop by to suck face,” Darcy said. “I have special ring tones for everyone that matters.”

“And playlists!” Jane added. “They’re pretty good.”

“She says that mostly because she helped out with a few. But yeah, they’re amazeballs,” shrugged Darcy.

“Wait, do I have a playlist?” Clint asked, perking up and trying to take a peek at Darcy’s laptop. She tilted the screen away from his line of vision.

“Yeah and sorry but it’s top secret at the mo.”

“Are we talking about your playlists?” Natasha asked, sauntering into the lab.

“What? Nat knows about them? C’mon, let me hear. Is _Free Bird_ on mine? I bet _Free Bird_ is on mine. _Free Bird_ better be one of my songs.”

“ _Carnival Song_ is on it,” Jane smirked. “Natasha picked that one out.” 

“Aw, Nat. Really?” Clint ignored Natasha’s smirk while quickly typing a sexually suggestive text message and sent it to Darcy. _Thunder and Blazes_ started to play.

To Darcy’s credit, she did look a little sheepish.

“Is this what you guys really think of me?” asked Clint, preparing to put on a huge show until Natasha interrupted him.

“Clint, I’m here on a mission. Phil says I’m not to let you out of my sight until you personally hand him your finished paperwork. Is this really where we’re at now?”

“Yesterday, Clint said he’d pay me if I did filled them out for him,” Darcy supplied unhelpfully. “So yeah, that’s where we’re at.”

“Well, he said he’d pay in sexual favours,” Jane added even more unhelpfully. “And then he ran a hand up and down her desk lamp. I was uncomfortable.” 

“Fine, I’ll do them if you ladies will stop bustin’ my balls,” Clint threw up his hands and made his way out of the lab.

The last mission had been rather disastrous. A group of tourists had recognised him as Hawkeye and tried to take pictures of him while he was following the target. Then, there were a lot more guns and bombs than really should have been in an abandoned factory. When the target realised what was happening, he had let them off like the Fourth of July. So the paperwork- from incident reports to disclosure forms from the medical bay resolving them of any responsibility if Clint’s unchecked injuries got worse- was a large pile on his seldom visited desk. Seemed he had to procrastinate alone now.

When he was almost out of the labs, his phone buzzed and he saw Darcy had replied to his innovative use of orbital shakers.

 

 _C_ + _, cause it would probably break the shaker and I’d have to file an incident report_

 

* * *

 

About four hours later, all of Clint’s paperwork was finished and filed with the right parties. He even got some sparring in with Natasha and brushed up on background info for a potential mission. The day was turning out to be pretty productive. So, he was heading back towards the labs. But this time, not for his usual games with Darcy. This time, he had a plan.

Clint was rather determined to find out what was on his playlist. Darcy had dangled the secret in front of him like a carrot on a stick. He was definitely up for the challenge of taking it without her knowing. Honestly, if Darcy hadn’t wanted him to find out, she’d never mentioned it in the first place. Never mind it was Jane that actually mentioned the playlist.

As he walked into the lab, he was relived to find Darcy still sitting at her desk with her laptop open and earbud in. Jane had moved on from destroying Stark tech and the core of the offending machine now had a number of additions. It was whirring happily and lighting up in what Clint hoped was not a sign of impending doom.

“You’re back,” Darcy observed flatly, deadpan facial expression in place.

“And you still don’t have coffee,” pouted Jane.

“You have an assistant. Can’t she get you coffee?”

“But it’s all the way over there where you are and I’m over here playing Candy Crush,” Darcy gave him a little pout and fluttered her eyes.

“Pretty sure Candy Crush isn’t one of your contracted jobs,” shrugged Clint, moving further away from the coffee pot.

“Actually, Darcy found a way to earn grant money via high scores on Candy Crush. At least that’s what she tells me. Now pour,” Jane held out her empty mug in Clint’s direction.

“How much sleep have you two actually had?” Clint asked, noticing the dark bags under Jane’s eyes as he took the mug from her. He didn’t know if he missed it earlier or if it was just starting to show.

“Uh, like, five hours the past couple days?” Darcy shrugged, blowing a kiss when Clint took her own empty mug and went to fill them up. Next to the coffee machine, he saw a couple of empty cans of Rockstar Coffee and Energy Drink. That explained a few things.

“You guys planning on getting any more?” asked Clint, knowing his patronizing tone was the pot calling the kettle black when his own sleeping schedule often wasn’t much better.

“Meh,” shrugged Jane. Clint rolled his eyes and took their requests for levels of sugar and cream.  Before he could bring them their mugs, Tony Stark strolled in.

“What’s this I hear about you destroying my property?” asked Tony, making a beeline for the whirring piece of equipment next to Jane.

“Jarvis, you’re a traitor,” Jane moaned.

“Send us stuff that doesn’t bust in the middle of a scientific break through and she wouldn’t have to,” Darcy argued.

“This is why we can’t have nice things!” Tony exclaimed, taking hold of the device and strutting away.

“Hey! What the hell? Stark! Come back with that!” Jane screamed, chasing after Stark with a hammer. When they exited the lab completely, Darcy stood up and went to watch them, peaking her head outside the door.

“Crap, this is the second time he’s done this in a week,” Darcy sighed.

“He’s done this before?” Clint lowered his voice to a mumble, thinking Stark had been a little over the top. Calling in Stark for the favour had been rather easy when he mentioned Darcy probably had a Tony playlist too. Getting Tony to actually do something other than hack into Darcy’s computer had been a little more difficult.

“Yeah, you’d be surprised. Just…watch the lab for a sec. I have to threaten him with Pepper,” Darcy requested, picking up her phone and running after the shouting geniuses making a ruckus in the hall. Other scientists began to poke their heads out of their labs to see what was going on.

Clint waited until he was sure Darcy wasn’t going to come right back. Moving swiftly, he headed to her laptop and opened up the iTunes program that was still running. Soon enough, he found the playlist folder holding all the Avengers playlists and started to take pictures of each. He let himself smirk as he looked through his playlist. _Free Bird_ wasn’t on it and neither was _Carnival Song_. The missing former was a bit disappointing but The Clash was on it so that was something. Outside of that, there were mostly songs and bands he hadn’t heard of but the few he recognised were…kind of spot on. He recognised The Killers as band he’d become a little fond of recently, mostly because Darcy had played one of their songs on a jukebox. Lynyrd Skynyrd’s absence aside, Clint knew that the playlist was probably good within its own right. He trusted Darcy’s choice in music.

Tony’s playlist was, of course, filled with classic rock but had a couple modern flourishes. Clint knew that a song called _Gin & Milk_ was probably a good theme song for the Iron Man outside of Black Sabbath or AC/DC.

Just as Clint began to restore the screen, he saw a playlist titled ‘Super Secret Playlist for Seducing Archers’. His pulse quickened. When he opened it and began to look at the song choice, he heard Darcy’s heels clicking closer. He took a picture, restored the laptop and rushed back to the coffee mugs. When Darcy walked through the door, he gave an innocent smile, offering her mug but she ignored him. She headed straight for Jane’s tools, picked up a screwdriver and walked out, all while pressing her cell to her ear.

Deciding that things may have gone a bit too far, Clint stuck his head out of the doorway to see how Tony’s distraction was progressing. A few other scientists had foolishly decided to get involved and Darcy was now putting Pepper on speakerphone while brandishing a screwdriver like a fencer’s sword. All in all, it seemed like a normal day at SHIELD.

 

* * *

  

Giddiness settled over Clint for the rest of the day and into the night. He mulled over his interactions with Darcy, from their very first meeting to their games to all her blushes, laughter and double entendres. His memories were unhelpful in the end. They flirted, they always had, but never was there a clear sign of intent. The possibility that this was meant for someone else crossed his mind but there wasn’t another archer he knew of that she interacted with so the seduction playlist _must_ be about him. Truth be told, he didn’t _want_ it to be about anyone else. That thought brought unwelcome anger and jealousy, pooling dangerously in his gut.

Clint wasn’t blind. Darcy was very attractive and he’d suddenly become more aware of that within the past few hours. But he thought all she felt towards him was the affection a younger sibling. Sort of. Siblings who made constant innuendoes and flirted with each other? So, weird attic siblings.

The possibility that this was a planted joke crossed his mind. Darcy knew he’d snoop around her laptop. To think otherwise was giving him too much faith and disregarded his penchant for sticking his nose into business that wasn’t his. Unless this was a test. Or just an extreme turning of tables in their game.

Once he was home, Clint compiled all the songs on the playlist together, in hopes that he’d somehow find answers. As the upbeat, cheeky songs started to play, Clint couldn’t help but laugh. The songs were overtly sexual, of course, a little ridiculous at times but also flirty and dirty, like their games. Clint could practically see Darcy in front of a jukebox, sticking her tongue out and rolling her eyes as he listened. 

Clint found himself actually liking a few of the songs. _Take Off Your Clothes_ screamed of Darcy’s brazenness and Clint kind of dug this Ke$ha girl, especially if she hung out with Iggy Pop and had more songs about sex in classic cars. He began to warm leftover pizza when the tempos slowed. _Slow Motion_ was a pretty good make out song. If he were still into putting on a special mixtape and making out with girls in his car during warm summer nights. Which he was.

An image of Darcy sitting in the red upholstered passenger seat of a ’79 Trans Am entered his brain. Her lips plump and sucked red, short leather skirt hiked up her thighs and polka dot blouse unbuttoned, revealing a lacy burgundy bra. He tried to push the thought out his mind and ate the rest of his pizza.

The final song began to play as Clint threw his plate into the sink, waiting for the water to warm.

“ _Every time I see your face, I get all wet between my legs. Every time you pass me by, I heave a sigh of pain_.”

The image of Darcy sitting in coyly in the Trans Am came back and Clint forgot his one hand under the running water.

“ _Every time I see your face I think of things unpure, unchaste. I want to fuck you like a dog. I’ll take you home and make you like it…”_

Clint’s breath came out in heavy puffs. The Darcy in his mind shifted in the passenger seat, running a hand through her loose, curly hair then taking off her glasses. She hiked up her skirt even higher to reveal matching burgundy panties before letting her blouse fall down her arms and onto the seat.

“ _Everything you ever wanted. Everything you ever thought of is everything I’ll do to you_. _I’ll fuck you and your minions too._ ”

Darcy crawled over until she was straddling Clint. She sat on his lap and smiled the cute little smile she gave him almost every day. The one that normally greeted him when he walked through the lab door. Her tongue darted out and wet her lips.

“ _Your face reminds me of a flower. Kind of like you’re underwater. Hair’s too long and in your eyes. Your lips a perfect suck me size_.”

Flingers dove under his shirt and ran up his stomach and sides. She leaned forward so her breasts were resting against his bare chest. Her lips hovered over his. Clint ran his hands up her thighs and squeezed, pulling her in tighter against his constricting jeans.

“ _You act like you’re fourteen years old. Everything you say is so obnoxious, funny, true and mean. I want to be your blowjob queen_.”

Darcy kissed him, sucking on his bottom lip before darting out her tongue to play with his. Her hands moved from his chest to his scalp and they tugged at his hair. Leaving his mouth so she could moan, Darcy slowly licked a line up his throat. Taking his hands in hers, she pulled them over her hips, skimming up her stomach and resting them on her breasts. Satisfied, she sucked on his earlobe and began to unbutton his jeans.

“ _You’re probably shy and introspective. That’s not part of my objective. I just want your fresh young jimmy cramming, slamming, ramming in me…_ ”

Suddenly, Clint was aware of the scalding hot water running over his hand and he jerked back.

“ _Everything you ever wanted. Everything you ever thought of is everything I’ll do to you. I’ll fuck you till your dick is blue_.”

Darcy’s image was still in his head but this time, she wore a knowing, triumphant smirk as she straddled his lap and that just bewildered him. The song ended and he was left in his kitchen with a mildly burnt hand and no idea of what to do next. With a sigh, he looked down at the dent in his pants.

Maybe he had _one_ idea.

 

* * *

  

 The bewilderment over Darcy didn’t go away. Clint needed time to think about how he really felt. If it was just lust or not. It took three days for him to realise that he wanted her in all the ways the songs described and even more. He wanted to kiss her silly in the lab supply closet but he also wanted to hold her hand when they walked down the street. It was another day before Clint saw Darcy again and even then, it was a brief and unplanned interaction by the elevators.

After an incident in the field where an untested smoke bomb combined with Clint’s bad decisions, it had been ordered that all of Clint’s arrow prototypes were tested and looked over by Phil Coulson or another approved SHIELD superior. No one took into account the fact that Phil got just as excited by weapons as Clint. It was like two large children in a dangerous, high stakes toyshop. Nothing had exploded yet. At least, nothing that wasn’t supposed to.

Clint had just finished looking at a few new prototype arrows with Phil and they were waiting by the elevators to take them back to Phil’s floor and office.

The elevator made its way up and the doors opened to reveal Darcy dancing, back to the door, earbuds in her ears and a bag of takeout in her hand. She moved freely, joy accentuating every wave of her arms and roll of her hips. Something in Clint’s chest tightened pleasantly at the sight. He couldn’t help the fond grin touching his lips.

Realizing that the elevator had stopped, Darcy turned around and for a moment, looked embarrassed to have been caught. It was very brief though.

 “Je ne regrette rien,” Darcy claimed boldly, taking her headphones out of her ears.

“I’m glad to hear it Miss Lewis,” Phil moved, stepping aside to give her room to step out of the elevator so he could step in. Before Clint followed, he lingered close to Darcy, invading her personal space like he often did. He was hyperaware of the way his body tensed when he smelled her perfume.

“Nice moves Darcy,” Clint smirked, ignoring the slight increase of his pulse when she raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

“It’s how I roll,” shrugged Darcy, putting her headphones back in and continuing the journey to Jane’s lab, dancing all the way. He watched her until she turned a corner, a little disappointed she didn’t turn back for a final glance, and then joined Phil. His handler was holding back snickers and didn’t avoid eye contact. Amusement lit up his eyes.

“What?” Clint frowned.

“Nothing, just I thought you liked women who…were a bit more dangerous,” said Phil, choosing his words wisely.

“I was just talking to her. Nothing else. Can’t I exchange words with someone without it meaning anything more?” Clint demanded, shoulders slumping when he heard the defensive tone rising in his voice.

“Is that what the kids are calling it?” mused Phil innocently.

“Yeah. I think so. What do you mean by dangerous?” asked Clint.

“Your relationships tend to end with a bang. Literally and figuratively. You’re drawn to adrenaline. A lot of field agents are,” Phil said. Clint fought the urge to argue and let Phil finish. “Don’t be offended by it. Besides, want I wanted to say is I think Darcy might be good for you. You could, and have, done a lot worse.”

“Well there’s nothing there,” sighed Clint, shoving his hands into his pockets and trying not to acknowledge the sinking feeling in his stomach that emerged at that depressing thought. It mixed with the glee that his handler approved of someone he was interested in. They were silent the rest of their trip which gave Clint more than enough time to realise he was approaching this all wrong.

 

* * *

  

The brief elevator interaction put Clint back into gear. He wanted Darcy. It was plain and simple. So he was just going to do what they always did. Flirt. But this time, there would be intent.

Later that day, he walked back to the labs. He did not expect to find the lab blasting tango beat filled pop music about love triangles or Tony dipping Darcy dramatically.

“Where’d you learn to dance?” Darcy asked as Tony pulled her back up and they twirled. She wore a simple plum knee-length dress and it flared slightly as they spun. Behind them, Bruce and Jane had linked arms and were walking in a circle. A rather half-assed attempt to dance while they continued to look at notebooks in their free hands.

“Other than my natural talent?” Smirked Tony and Clint rolled his eyes. “My mother. Lessons when I was twelve. You?” Tony asked, pulling Darcy in close to start a series of complex steps.

“Simon Cohen. Eighth grade. He came back that summer and wooed all the girls. I got special lessons.”

“I bet you did,” Tony waggled his eyebrows with a dirty smirk that matched Darcy’s. The song ended but wasn’t followed by anything else. Jane and Bruce unhooked arms and walked to separate corners of the lab to stare at blipping screens while Darcy finally noticed Clint.

“Oh hey, long time no see. Big, secret mission?” Darcy asked, smiling at him. Clint couldn’t help but think back to his fantasy and a many that had followed. Clearing his throat, he shrugged. He hadn’t expected a huge crowd to watch as he tried to flirt his way permanently into Darcy’s heart but he wasn’t going to back down now.

“No, just, doing some things.”

“What kind of things?” Tony asked, looking like he was genuinely interested but Clint could see an evil smirk pulling on his lips. Iron Man was up to something and Clint didn’t trust him.

“Not having dance parties,” Clint said simply, pouting at Darcy. It didn’t earn much a reaction from her. He swallowed past his disappointment. 

“Sorry Barton but they’re invitation only,” Tony stated.

“It was actually just a Jane and me thing but then Tony found out about it and complained like the big baby he is. We do it sometimes when nothing big is happening,” explained Darcy. Clint started to saunter towards her desk, hands in his back pockets.

“Except something is happening now. These readings are…interesting,” Bruce said, quirking his head at his screen and scratching his chin.

“Tony has terrible timing for dance parties,” Darcy began to dig through a pile of notes.

“What’s with all the private dance parties lately anyway?” asked Clint, getting the feeling that he was being snubbed in favour of science. Or perhaps attempts to look professional in front of Tony and Bruce. Though that was a little laughable.

“What?” Darcy looked up at Clint, confused for a moment until she remembered her lunch break. “Oh, my elevator dances? A friend and I to do that all the time back in high school,” Darcy paused her search and smiled fondly at the memory before shaking herself out of it. “Sometimes I need to express myself through the medium of dance. I’m a complicated woman.”

“I’ve gathered,” Clint smiled warmly at her. Soon, Darcy found the note she wanted and gave a triumphant shout.

“Knew I had it. I didn’t know that writing on the side was important. It looked like an order for Dumpling Kingdom,” she handed the sheet to Bruce who just gave a soft ‘huh’ and looked back and forth between the screen and the notes.

“That’s it, I’m sending up a scanner. No reason to type everything in by hand. Scan it and Jarvis can make electronic copies. Much easier,” Tony said, distastefully looking through all of the notes on Darcy’s desk that had yet to be punched into the computer.

“Some people like doing things the old fashioned way,” argued Darcy.

“You mean making scratches on a piece of rock?” 

Before Darcy could spit out a retort, her cell phone beeped. It was a relatively normal tone, given her preference for personalised ringtones. Darcy glared at Tony and went to grab her cell phone from her desk.

“We’re going back to this conversation and I’ll make a retort so amazing, you’ll cry.”

“Out of happiness or broken feelings?” smirked Tony, joining Bruce in deciphering the incoming data.

“Both,” said Darcy, looking at her phone and grinning. Clint felt on edge, not liking the smile her phone was getting.

“What are you grinning about Lewis?” Tony asked, taking the question out of Clint’s mouth.

“It’s Ian,” Darcy said, as if that explained everything. She began to type a reply.

“Tell your boyfriend to stop bothering you in the middle of important science,” Tony complained.

“Shut up.”

“Boyfriend?” Clint asked, trying to keep his face impassive but he could feel a grumpy frown twitching his lips downwards. The wind was practically knocked out of his chest and he had the urge to punch the wall. Was it all just a big joke? The playlist, the flirting…

“He’s not my boyfriend,” Darcy insisted, tucking her phone away. For a moment, Clint was able to stifle the feelings of betrayal.

“He’s an ex,” Jane said. The reassurance made Clint want to vomit. 

“Not even. I mean, not really,” Darcy said, avoiding Clint’s gaze and walking over to join the working scientists.

“What’s not really?” asked Clint, trying to make his question sound more curious than demanding.

“He’s a fling. He saved my life during the second coming of Thor. We made out. He’s in England getting his PhD in Political Science and International Relations. That’s all she wrote,” Darcy shrugged, still not looking at Clint, trying to play it off as a very uninteresting story.

“Yeah, you’re not allowed to hire anyone for me anymore,” Jane stated.

“He was _my_ intern. I hired him for me. I can hire an assistant for myself if I want,” Darcy pouted.

“Actually you can’t. Your new SHIELD contract doesn’t say anything about hiring booty calls,” Tony said.

“How do you know what my contract says? And if it’s not mentioned, then I totally can. Loophole. I mean, hire assistants, not booty calls.”

“Well, have fun guys,” Clint called, once Darcy and Tony fell into another argument. So much for flirting. They didn’t take notice of him leaving like a dog with his tail between his legs but he did hear a specific comment break up their bickering as he made his way down the hall.  

“I think you hurt his feelings,” joked Tony.

“Shut up, Stark.”

 

* * *

 

Not being able to hold Darcy’s attention didn’t bring Clint down. At least not for too long. She still had a job she needed to do and so did he, as he soon remembered when within an hour, he was assigned another mission. Before Clint could even think about his tactics with Darcy, he was on a plane with Natasha, Steve, Thor and Tony, heading towards an A.I.M. facility that somehow got their hands on Chitauri technology. They used the technology to engineer a myriad of big weapons and had intentions to sell them to the highest bidder. Luckily, within fourteen hours, they had been able to prevent the bidding and bring the weapons into SHIELD custody. The Avengers (minus Bruce who was not needed and was still continuing research on the strange readings from earlier) were now sitting around the table of an Indian restaurant.

The hostess had been a little weary about letting five people with weapons in but once she recognized Iron Man and Thor, the influx of food had yet to stop. The restaurant was one of the first things they’d seen once they were back on American soil. They made it clear to SHIELD that no debriefing would occur until they got food.

Clint was happily enjoying his garlic naan when Tony turned towards him and emphasized the ‘o’ in his ‘so’.

“What?” asked Clint, not sure if he had the energy left to deal with whatever Tony wanted to stir up.  

“I saw you trying to flirt with Darcy. Need some advice on what women want from men?” Tony was sitting back and nibbling on a lamb curry dish. He had an insufferable expression that spoke of his vast knowledge of women and empathy for Clint. It made Clint want to shot him with a suction tip arrow. Right over his mouth.

“Didn’t you give Pepper a huge stuffed bunny for Christmas? I don’t think I need your advice,” sighed Clint.

“You sure? Because you were doing pretty bad.”

“I was only doing bad because you were annoying her,” Clint pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Really?” Tony looked unconvinced. “Stop making excuses for yourself. First step, right there.” 

“I don’t need your help flirting with woman.”

“As a genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist, I think you can learn a few tips from me. By the way, I checked her texts with Ian. They were about some terrible reporting about a Middle East crisis. Tame stuff. The other ones weren’t too hot either. I think you’re still in. You’re welcome by the way.”

“Does our brother in arms wish to court Lady Darcy?” Thor asked, slamming his hand on the table in excitement before Clint could make a comment about Tony invading Darcy’s privacy. “Excellent! I approve of this match! She has spoken fondly of you. She also tells me she enjoys the music of Bruno Mars. Perhaps a song in a similar manner would woo her.”

“Forget singing underneath her window. Girls don’t want that,” Tony dismissed.

“Worked for Romeo,” Steve interjected. “Well, not singing but similar.”

“Yeah and look where that got them. They died,” Tony rolled his eyes at Steve’s glare. “C’mon, you heard her in the labs. Her panties melt when a guy saves her life. I say we hire a SHIELD agent to mug her and you can jump in. Save the day and next thing you know, beast with two backs in the nearest bathroom.”

“I’m not going to hire someone to pretend to mug her,” Clint said, amazed that Tony would even think of that as a viable option. “Besides, she’d probably taze him.”

“I agree,” Thor said. “Let us not use any means of deception to win Darcy’s heart.”

“What do you mean by us?” asked Clint, wondering how this suddenly became a team effort.

“Look, just tell her how you feel,” said Steve, sparing once last scowl at Tony. “You don’t need some big show.”

“Don’t listen to him,” Tony pointed a thumb towards Steve and mock whispered. “He still can’t talk to girls.”

“I do just fine, thanks.”

“The bigger the better, Clint. Hey! Let’s get three guys and you can take them all on in front of her.” 

“Clint had no problem getting me into bed. I think he’ll do all right,” Natasha said and Clint felt relief that at least she had his back. She propped her chin on her hand and smirked in a way that that told Clint he would soon regret that thought. “But how _do_ you feel about her?”

“Really? You too?”

“It’s obvious you’ve liked her but you haven’t made a move. Why are you suddenly so keen on winning her now?” asked Natasha. Clint could tell from her tone that this was something she was genuinely curious about.

“It’s not _that_ obvious,” Clint deflected, wishing this were a private conversation with him and Natasha.

“It’s pretty obvious,” Tony said. “You two have been making googly eyes and dirty comments since she came to New York. So why the nutting up? _Oh_. Is this because of the playlist?”

“No,” scoffed Clint.

“It _is_ ,” Tony exclaimed, eyes wide and mocking grin in place. Obviously, Tony had hacked into Darcy’s computer and looked at her playlist on his own time. How could Clint have thought Tony would do otherwise? He was officially done including Tony in his mild pranks and nosey missions.

“What playlist?” asked Steve.

“Darcy has playslists- a list of songs- for each of us. Theme songs if you will.”

“I know what a playlist is Stark-”

“They’re pretty good too,” Tony continued to explain patronizingly. “And she’s got a special one for Clint. Doesn’t she?”

Instead of answering, Clint stared daggers at Tony, hoping he would shut up. The tone in Tony’s voice gained Natasha’s interest and she send a raised eyebrow Clint’s way, demanding an explanation for whatever loop she wasn’t apart of.

“She has them for all of us,” said Clint calmly, turning his attention back to his chicken curry. Not wanting to leave it there, Tony continued.

“We all don’t have seduction playlists dedicated to listing all the sex moves she wants to try on us.”

An unbidden vision of Darcy, half naked on the hood of a black Trans Am, flashed in front of Clint’s eyes. He drank his coke and avoided all the gazes that were now pointing towards him.

“Are you suggesting Clint’s affections towards Lady Darcy are based purely upon dishonourable foundations?” Thor asked, a hint of brotherly range sparking in his voice.

“Stark, if you’re trying to cause trouble,” Steve began to berate Tony.

“Just trying to get the truth out,” Tony cut in before Steve could finish. A heated argument began over Tony’s constant need to cross boundaries and insult everyone. Thor looked warily between Steve and Tony, then Clint, unsure of whom to question first.

Meanwhile, Clint and Natasha had a wordless conversation. A pointed look from Natasha asked if Clint only wanted to have sex with Darcy. Sighing and a brief scratch of his nose stated that he’d like that but he also wanted more. Squaring of her shoulders showed Natasha accepted that as a respectable answer. Also that she wanted him to pass the rice. When Clint passed her the bowl of rice, Natasha’s fingers lingered on his for a moment. It meant she thought he was a good man and he didn’t need to listen to Tony’s crap.

“Thanks,” Clint said. Natasha’s small smile told him to just go for it. 

 

* * *

  

After a few hours of sleep, Clint woke. In a perfect world, he’d be able to sleep through the day to catch up on much needed rest. In reality, he lay in bed and stared at his ceiling. A dream had woken him. The details grew fuzzier with each minute that passed but he could still remember Darcy’s laughter singing in his head.

This wasn’t fair. Just last week, he could talk with Darcy and drop numerous innuendoes without blinking but now…now he couldn’t hold her attention and she was haunting him in his sleep. It was nearing 4 PM. If he hurried, he might catch Darcy in the labs. She normally left by 5:30 unless there was some major work Jane wanted to continue.

By 5:15, he was walking down the hall and turned into the lab. He stopped and hovered by the door when he saw Darcy. She was alone in a baggy Cosby sweater, jeans and boots that were propped up on her desk. Earbuds were in her ears and she was making notes in a notebook. She was prettier now than in his dirtiest fantasy.

“I’m bulletproof. Nothing to lose. Fire away, fire away,” Darcy sang softly to herself, leafing through the notebook. Her voice was clear and sweet. “Ricochet, you take your aim. Fire away, fire away. You shoot my down but I won’t fall. I am titanium! Ugh.”

Darcy aimed for a high note and her voice cracked. Clint smiled at the sound. Putting down her notebook, Darcy went to reach for her cell phone and caught a glimpse of Clint. Panicked, Darcy swept her feet off the desk but ended up kicking a pile of files and a pencil holder to the floor. In a mess of uncoordinated limbs, she finally propped her head gracefully on her hand atop the desk and looked at Clint as cool as a cucumber. His smile turned into a grin.

“Where’s Jane?” Clint asked, drifting towards her desk.

“I made Thor take her out to get some vitamin D before the sun goes down.”

“Does Jane know your philosophy on taking care of her is similar to taking care of a plant?”

“Yes. A philodendron to be precise.”

“Cute,” chuckled Clint, sitting across from Darcy on the edge of her desk so that he was towering over her. 

“Thanks?” Darcy said, spinning her chair from side to side. She waited for Clint to say something, matching his sultry stare with an aloof one.

“So the mission went well? I thought you’d still be sleeping,” Darcy asked, breaking the silence. For a moment, Clint began to doubt his approach but he continued and pushed back a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Darcy’s eyes widened at the touch.

“I’m not dead. So it went all right. And I couldn’t sleep. So I’m here.”

“I don’t have any Ambien, if that’s what you’re after.”

“Nah. I just wanted to see you. I had a dream about you.”

 “I had a dream about you too.”

“Yeah?”

Darcy bit her lip, uncertain on whether or not to explain the details. She sat back in her chair and twirled a strand of hair around her finger. Crossing her legs, she studied Clint and decided to just tell him what he hoped were rather steamy details.

“Yeah,” smirked Darcy. She leaned her elbows on the desk and looked up at Clint, licking her lips. He could feel his blood rushing downwards.

“What happened?” Clint asked, lowering his voice to a deep whisper.

“ _Well_ , we were sitting in a car. In a field,” Darcy started, running a soft finger across the back of his hand. He took her hand in his and squeezed.

“And?”

“And a unicorn ran by. Then you got out and tried to shoot it with an arrow because you said it insulted your mother.”

Clint pulled away, dropping Darcy’s hand. Her coy smile turned into a snort.

“A unicorn?”

“Yeah. And then Thor got angry because the unicorn was his sister-in-law.”

A joke. This was all just a joke to her. Another one of their games. Clint felt an invisible knife jab violently into his gut.

“Nice, uh. I gotta go,” Clint stood up quickly and turned between Darcy and the door.

“What?” Worried, Darcy pulled her sleeves over her hands and started to sink down her chair. “I thought you’d like the Loki fucking a mythical ungulate joke.”

“It’s funny. Ah, just…something. I just remembered I needed to talk to Phil,” lied Clint, rushing out in search of fresh air to cool his heated skin.

 

* * *

  

In a dark corner of the Records Management Division was a cubicle. It was a small cubicle with an almost empty desk and a dartboard on one of the flimsy walls. This was Clint’s desk. After taking up Phil’s desk space to fill out paperwork one too many times, the cubicle had been assigned to Clint. There wasn’t much in the drawers other than some pens, sharpies and a couple of old _Bowhunter_ magazines. Today, Clint could be found throwing darts into his dartboard, over and over again. He didn’t care if the sound annoyed the employees around him who had long since gotten over the excitement of having Hawkeye among them.

Someone clearing her throat brought Clint out of his irritated thoughts. He turned to see Darcy, nervously tugging at the bottom of her blue plaid skirt.

“Hey,” Clint greeted, genuinely surprised. He was angry with himself for being excited to see her.

“Hey,” waved Darcy. “Natasha said I might find you here.”

“Oh, yeah. This is my desk.”

“I like what you’ve done with the place.”

“Yeah. Home away from home,” joked Clint, enjoying the way her baggy sweater, filled with colourful dinosaurs, fell off one shoulder. Her hair was straight today. He missed her curls.

“Look,” Darcy sighed, diving into whatever was bothering her. “I’m sorry I upset you.”

“You’re sorry?” Whatever he was expecting her to say, sorry was definitely not on the list.

“Yeah, Tony told me why you’ve been acting so…weird.”

“Tony told you? Everything?” His stomach dropped. Clint was certain that the next time he saw Tony, he would shove a putty arrow down the nosey billionaire’s throat. The look of pity in Darcy’s face was enough for Clint to know that the playlist had been a joke. Bitterness lumped in his throat and he clenched his jaw.

“Yeah. He told me about the playlist. That you saw it. I’m really sorry. I didn’t know you’d be so upset that _Free Bird_ wasn’t on it.”

“What?”

“This _is_ about _Free Bird_. Right?” Darcy looked to be on the verge of panic. “You’ve been avoiding me and…it sucks.”

“Yeah,” Clint said quickly, falling into a grin that didn’t really reach his eyes. “Sorry about that. It was stupid of me. But…c’mon. _Free Bird_ is totally my song.”

“It didn’t fit in with the other songs I picked so it had to go,” Darcy’s shoulders relaxed and she nudged Clint’s foot with hers.

“You could have made it fit if you really tried.”

“That’s what she said,” Darcy let slip and they shared a smile. “Do you want to grab dinner tonight? I’ve been craving dim sum.”

“Yeah. I’d like that. See you tonight?”

“See ya,” Darcy said goodbye with an awkward wave. He watched her turn and leave, satisfaction creeping into his muscles. Maybe he’d seduce her yet.

 

* * *

 

Amused, Darcy watched Thor begin to place his order with the waitress. The big guy had become a huge fan of dim sum since relocating to New York City with Jane and the rest of the team. But with how much food he ate, their table always ended up being the one with the most plates and steamer baskets, stacked up to the point of almost collapsing.

Glancing at her phone to check the time and then a quick peek at the door for the hundredth time did not magically reveal Clint. Tapping her fingers on the table, Darcy watched enviously as Jane beamed at Thor with love in her eyes. Darcy truly admired their relationship. It was something she wanted badly, ever since getting swept away in the excitement of Jane and Thor’s love story. Now that Thor was back and making constant turtledove eyes with Jane, Darcy found herself a little lonely. It was Darcy’s turn for a romantic love affair, as she and Jane declared late one girls’ night out. She didn’t want to admit it of course, but deep down she hoped that a particular archer would be that special someone who’d take journey with her. Reality was very different from fantasy, much to her displeasure.

From the start, Darcy had been a little head over heels for Clint. But then, after a month of flirting, Darcy bitterly realised that it was all just a stupid game to him. He just enjoyed trying to make her squirm and annoying her. Discussions about all the ways he wanted to do her _weren’t_ because he wanted to but because it was the easiest way to make her blush. At first, she hoped it was like Teddy Morris from Kindergarten. He’d seen to it that recess was a living hell for Darcy but once High School started, Teddy was the first to ask her out to the Spring Fling (and the first to go to second base with her).

But it seemed Clint was a different matter. Either this was some ego trip for him or the lack of normal relationships in his life had broken down what were considered important borderlines for most friendships. Darcy tried to get over it the best she could. Pushing Clint out of her life wasn’t an option. It wasn’t like she could avoid him forever if she wanted to keep hanging out with Thor. Besides, he always made her day infinitely better without even trying. Losing that would suck hard.

Getting over never winning Clint had been difficult. Hell, she’d even made a ‘seducing Clint’ playlist when she had one too many glasses of Barefoot wine. Listening to it made her laugh, dancing around her apartment, singing into a hairbrush and pretending that she could confidently seduce Clint with a short skirt and crop top. She wasn’t sure she’d ever have the guts to try it out though. At least not sober.  

She was doing a lot better now than a couple months ago, which was something. Their game of sexual chicken was getting easier by the day and Darcy had even been punching in a few wins of her own. Maybe one day, the butterflies in her stomach would stop fluttering whenever he was near her. She could only hope.

The entrance bell rang and Darcy was pulled out of her thoughts in time to see Clint entering. She smiled, waving him over.  He had on a pair of dark jeans and a white button-up shirt underneath a slightly rumpled black suit jacket. He was nervously toying with something in his jacket pocket. It was the most dressed up she’d seen him outside of forced suit and tie events for SHIELD. When he saw her at the table, his face dropped before turning into what she had dubbed ‘spy mode’. He used it when he wanted to be impassive and unreadable. Darcy found it normally meant he was crabby. Her heart sank.

“Hey guys,” Clint greeted, taking the empty seat next to Darcy.

“Hey,” Darcy smiled but she didn’t get one in return.

“You guys ordering already?”

“Thor normally gets the whole menu. We decided to give him a head start,” Darcy explained. Nodding, Clint picked up the menu in front of him and opened it. Soon enough, everyone had put their orders in and they sat in silence until Thor spoke up.

“Darcy, has Clint told you of our glorious battle? I hope songs shall be sung of his bravery and valour. It is truly an honour to fight by his side,” Thor beamed and Darcy turned to Clint in time to see him stare at Thor in disbelief.

“So…it _was_ a good mission?” Darcy asked.

“I guess. If you look at it that way,” said Clint slowly, eyeing Thor warily.

“You are a good man on and off the battlefield. Any maiden would be privileged to lay with you. Do you not agree Darcy?”

“What? Uh…I guess,” stumbled Darcy. She didn’t really want to admit that she was totally one of those maidens dying to sleep with Hawkeye. Especially in front of Hawkeye. Across from Darcy, Jane was biting her lip to stop from laughing. Next to her, Clint put his head in his hands.

“Thanks for the vote,” said Clint, his hands muffling his voice.

“Speaking of which, how have the maidens been?” Jane asked cheerfully.

“Fine, thanks,” Clint smiled tightly.

“Anyone you like in particular? Someone who caught your eye? Maybe at work?” Continued Jane and Darcy kicked her lightly under the table. Dread filled Darcy’s gut, wondering what the hell had gotten into Jane. She was the only one Darcy had told about the crush. Jane kicked back and stared at Clint as if nothing had happened.

“Um…well there are a lot of pretty women at work,” said Clint. “My eye gets caught occasionally.”

“But is there one woman that you _really_ like?”

“Oh thank god, the food is here!” Darcy interrupted as the waitress started to set out a few sauces for the incoming food. Technically, the food hadn’t arrived but Darcy was going to look for anyway to avoid this conversation. She was relieved though, when a cart of dim sum drove by, distracting Thor. The conversation shifted to the quality of the food and other, safer topics. Every so often, Thor would add a strange compliment about Clint and Clint would sigh in frustration at Thor’s pleased smile. While the food was tasty, Darcy wasn’t sure it was worth the strange company.

They left the restaurant and said hurried goodbyes to Clint who quickly went his own way while Darcy walked back with Jane and Thor. Once Clint was out of earshot, Darcy pinched Jane.

“What the hell was that?” muttered Darcy.

“What? I was just trying to help you guys out. That was a shitty double date on your part,” Jane said.

“That wasn’t a double date. Clint doesn’t like me that way,” Darcy insisted, lowering her voice but knowing that Thor was going to hear either way.

“Has my shield brother not made clear his intentions to court you?” Thor asked and Darcy’s stomach flew high before dropping at her feet.

“Intentions to what now?”

“Oh, perhaps I should not have spoken,” paled Thor, realising his faux pas.

“Come on, it’s obvious that Clint has a thing for you. Did you see what he wore? He thought it was a date,” said Jane, crossing her arms.

“He doesn’t have a thing for me. It’s all just…just a stupid game and he says things but he doesn’t mean anything,” Darcy tried to convince herself but her thoughts were travelling a hundred miles a second. It made sense. He had walked into the restaurant and frowned when he saw Thor and Jane. He even wore a button-up and suit jacket for Christ’s sake. Her unicorn dream had upset him because she played it up as something sexier…

All the signs were there; suddenly clear in front of her. Yet, Darcy still didn’t want to believe that this was happening. She didn’t want to be disappointed when Clint decided she wasn’t worth the effort.

“Darcy, do you truly doubt Clint’s intentions? From what I gathered, he has harboured strong feelings for you for quite some time. After our mission, Tony claimed Clint had been trying to win your attention but to no avail. He said a playlist made him certain of your affections towards him and had intentions to return them,” Thor explained.  

Suddenly, Darcy remembered the _other_ playlist that she made about Clint and things started to make more sense. Of course he’d see it if he was snooping around her iTunes. Hope burst in her chest.

“Oh my god. Crap, I have to go after him!” Darcy shouted, running back the opposite direction. Jane and Thor didn’t stop her but she realised after jogging a few minutes that Clint must have already headed home. It took her a half an hour but Darcy eventually made her way back to the dim sum restaurant with the realization that she had no idea where Clint lived. He didn’t live in Stark Tower or close to SHIELD HQ, as far as she knew. She also probably missed the mark of just wandering around Chinatown calling out his name in hopes he was close enough to hear.

It took a while for Darcy to figure out Clint’s address but after a call to Jane who then called Natasha, Darcy was back on the right track. When she reached the door of Clint’s apartment, she took a deep, calming breath, trying to get her overexerted heart in check. When she was confident that her words wouldn’t come out as wheezes, she knocked.

Clint opened the door, looking like he was getting ready to say something but sucked in a breath when he saw Darcy. His eyes widened and he cleared his throat nervously. A plain blue t-shirt already replaced his button-up and suit jacket.

“Hey, what are you doing-”

“Was tonight supposed to be a date?” Darcy cut in.

“What?” Clint played dumb, shifting from foot to foot.

“It’s just, after you left Thor said something about you finding a playlist and I realised he meant my…my seduction one and I made that when I was drunk one night but I just wanted to know how you felt. Because…if tonight was a date and I fucked it up? I was hoping that maybe we could go on another one. A real one. Because I really like you and if you don’t like me that’s fine ‘cause I’ll keep trying to get over you but if you did then, uh, I think we should do something about it?” Darcy ended her rant as a question. She hadn’t meant that much to come out so incoherently but when she opened her mouth, it all just fell out in a jumble. For a moment, Darcy was worried she had said all the wrong things but one look at Clint’s smile and she knew that wasn’t the case.

“I’ve been trying to do something about it. I’ve just been doing a terrible job of it,” Clint laughed. He looked at Darcy with such tenderness in his eyes that she was sure she’d melt on the spot. “Actually, I wanted to give you something at the restaurant but I chickened out.”

“What?” Darcy asked, curiosity bursting at her seams. She remembered him fingering something in his pocket. Taking a few long seconds, Clint looked at Darcy as if he was calculating something.

“Not here,” Clint said simply, going back into his apartment and then emerging with a grey jacket and keys. Wordlessly, he locked his door and took Darcy’s hand. It didn’t matter to Darcy where he was taking her or why, only that his warm hand laced with hers felt heavenly and was sending shivers down her back. They walked out of the apartment building and down the street to a parked car. It was white Mustang with a black streak down the front of the hood. From the shape, Darcy guessed it was made in the ‘80s. Clint unlocked it and motioned for her to get into the passenger’s side.

“Nice wheels,” Darcy said.

“Thanks. I had a nicer one. ‘70 Dodge Challenger but it got swept away during Hurricane Sandy.”

“That sucks.”

“Eh, I got over it.”

 

* * *

  

They drove in silence through New York City and into the Lincoln Tunnel. Darcy was a little worried that whatever Clint needed to give her had to be done in New Jersey but she didn’t speak up. The drive was calming and Clint liked her. That’s all she cared about. The radio was tuned to a baseball game. She let the steady commentary and rumbling of the car lull her into a place of blissful contentment. When they had driven to the top of a hill, Clint parked on the side of the road, turning off the engine but keeping the keys in the ignition. Darcy looked out the window and saw a clear and beautiful view of the New York City skyline. The buildings reflected onto the water, making shimmering beams of light as a half moon shone proudly in the cloudless sky.   

“So you wanted to give me a nice view of New York?” Darcy asked, admiring the image. It didn’t take long for her to turn back to Clint. That was a view she liked a lot better.

“Yeah, I wanted a bit of atmosphere,” Clint said, taking something out of his pocket. Darcy saw it was a cassette tape.

“What’s that?”

“Mixtape. It took me ages to find. I wasn’t sure I still had it,” admitted Clint, taking it out of the case and popping it into the cassette deck. Darcy took the case and read the title.

“Clint’s Make Out Mix?” smirked Darcy. The first song started playing. She didn’t recognise it other than a general 90’s rock ballad but she liked the mellow sound.

“Hey, don’t knock it just yet. This used to get all the ladies hot for Clint Barton,” Clint said, slowly moving an arm up and behind Darcy’s headrest.

“So is this your seduction move?” Darcy asked, turning towards him. “I kind of like it.”

“Good,” Clint smiled. He leaned in slowly and Darcy’s heart pounded like an excited hummingbird in her chest. His warm breath tickled her nose. “Because I’ve sort of had this fantasy of making out with you in a car for the past week. Was hoping we could do something about it.”

“Really now? Just making out?” Darcy asked. She thought back to her playlist and the one song about car sex. A number of questions tugged at her mind and she knew they needed to have a serious discussion. How did her playlist really play into his feelings? Was this something he had wanted for a while or just recently? Was it going to turn into something more?

These were all very important questions but with the way Clint was licking his lips and looking at Darcy like she was the only person in the world that mattered to him, Darcy figured they could wait. Particularly since she had been thinking about his moment more times than she cared to count.

“Well, I wanna stay a gentleman,” Clint said softly, caressing the side of her face. The graze of his fingers sent tingles through her skin. He saw how it affected her and smirked.

“Maybe you can drop the gentleman act. Just till the tape ends?”

“With pleasure.”

Clint leaned in further, taking Darcy’s cheek gently in his hand. Just before he could close the distance completely, Darcy pulled back. The quirk of his eyebrow told her she needed to give a really good reason as to why he shouldn’t just pull her in roughly for a kiss right this second.

“Wait, so…you saw my playlist and decided you wanted me?”

“Uh, kind of. I realised you wanted me and that I wanted you back. Can we talk about the details later?” Clint leaned in once more but Darcy pulled back again. She could tell he was getting frustrated so she lightly played with the hem of his shirt to keep contact.  

“Does that mean I kind of seduced you without even trying?”

“Yeah,” chuckled Clint. “I guess you did. Impressive.”

“I told you my playlists are amazeballs.”

“Yeah, too bad my mixtapes are little-” Darcy cut Clint off by smashing her lips onto his. It didn’t take long for him to react and refocus. His lips quickly went to work, nipping and sucking on hers, before opening her mouth to let their tongues dance. He placed a hand on the back of her head, tangling his fingers into her hair. The sound of heavy breathing and exploring lips started to drown out the music. Darcy’s hands found their way onto Clint’s chest and she clutched his shirt in an attempt to get closer. She scooted over, moving one leg over the gear stick and in between Clint’s legs. Clint’s arm had moved away from Darcy’s seat and wrapped around her waist, trying to help boost her up and over and onto his lap.

Sharp taps on Clint’s window made them freeze mid-kiss like guilty teenagers. They broke apart and looked into the bright flashlight of a police officer. Darcy reluctantly peeled herself off of Clint and sat back on her side of the car as Clint rolled down his window.

“Problem officer?”

“Sorry sir, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave. You’re not allowed to park here.”

“You know any good places to make out around here?” Clint asked innocently, making Darcy snicker. The police officer wasn’t as amused.

“Is there a reason why you can’t be seen in public with that beautiful lady sitting next to you?” The officer asked.

“I’m not jailbait or a prostitute. But thank you,” Darcy said sweetly, earning a smile and wink from the police officer.

“Now please buddy, don’t make me ask again.”

“Yeah, yeah, we’re leaving,” mumbled Clint

“Have a good night,” the officer pointed his comment towards Darcy before walking away from the car.

“Should we move this to someplace more comfortable?” asked Clint.

“A couch would be nice. Bed is better,” said Darcy.

“Well you’re in luck because I have both of those at my place.”

“Do you have more mixtapes?” Darcy teased.

“I have a pump up mixtape. Does _Eye Of The Tiger_ get you hot?”

“Not sure if I want to find out. Anything else?”

“Pretty sure I have _Free Bird_ …”

“How about we listen to my playlist instead? I’ll show you a few more moves. They kind of go with the music.”

“I like the sound of that.”

Clint started the car, leaning over and giving Darcy another kiss. It was short but sweet. As they drove back to New York, they stole glances at one another, letting Clint’s mixtape build up anticipation for what was to come. Still feeling the phantom of his warm lips on hers, Darcy touched her mouth with the tips of her fingers and decided that reality was much better than fantasy. 

**Author's Note:**

> Songs Mentioned:  
>  _Free Bird_ \- Lynyrd Skynyrd  
>  _Carnival Song_ \- Tim Buckley  
>  _Thunder and Blazes/ Entrance of the Gladiators_ \- composed by Julius Fucik  
>  _Gin & Milk_\- Dirty Pretty Things  
>  _Take Off Your Clothes_ \- Morningwood  
>  _Dirty Love_ \- Ke$ha Ft. Iggy Pop  
>  _Gold Trans Am_ \- Ke$ha  
>  _Slow Motion_ \- Avan Lava  
>  _Flower_ \- Liz Phair  
>  _Titanium_ \- David Guetta ft. Sia  
>  _Eye of the Tiger_ \- Survivor
> 
> Songs not directly mentioned but that I had in my head if you're curious:  
>  _Objection Tango_ \- Shakira  
>  _Fade Into You_ \- Mazzy Star (as one of Clint's Make Out Mixtape songs)


End file.
